Electrical system.



F. CONRAD.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM. APPLICATION FILED AUG. n. 1913.

Patented N V, 1917.

1/ ATTORNEY INVENTOR W UNITED STATES P TENT oFF o- FRANK CONRAD, OF SWISSVALE, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO WESTINGHOUSE ELEG- Specification of Letters Patent.

' 'rnrc AND MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A conPonA'rIoN or PENNSYLVANIA.

' I ELECTRICAL system.

Application filed August 11, 1913. Serial No. 784,044.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK CONRAD, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of terns, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to electrical systems such as are particularly adapted for use in connection with automobiles or other motor vehicles. 1 I

My invention has for one of its objects to provide a system which operates automati cally to propel a motor vehicle in case the englne stops from any cause,

Another object of my invention is to provide a means wherebythe circuit of a starting motor is "controlled by the ignition switch.

In the operation of motor vehicles, it sometimes occurs that the operator, by mistake or inadvertence, stops or stalls the engine. It may happen that such an event occurs at such a time or under such circum stances that there is insufficient: time to crank the engine in order to move the vehicle to a place-of safety or to avoid a congestion of traffic. the engine should stop when the engine is on a railway crossing in front of an ap proaching train, it is hi hly important that,

the vehicle should be lmmediately moved out of danger.

It is customary; in the ordinary operation of an automobile, toremove the switch plug when the machine is left unattended,

and thereby prevent unauthorized persons tomatic switch is controlled by the engine speed by means of the voltage values of a generator which is connected to the engine For example, in case.

shaft. When the engine stops, the motor automatically the engine.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side view in elevation of a portion of an automobile with my invention applied thereto, the electrical circuits and certain of the apparatus being shown diagrammatically. Fig.2 is a diagrammatic viewof, circuits and apparatusembodying a modifi cation of my invention. Fig. 3 is a View,

' similar to Fig. 2,015 a second modification.

Referring particularly to Fig. 1, an auto"- mobile 1 comprises the usual gasengine 2 having a shaft 3 and a fly wheel 4 that is provided with gear teeth 5 upon its outer Patented Nov. 13, 1917.

56 propels the vehicle or starts periphery. The body-portion of the vehicle comprises a dashboard 6, a footboard 7, and

frame -members 8.. An electric motor 9, which is supported in any suitable manner, is provided with an extended armature shaft 10. A pinion 11, having an integral grooved collar 12, is slidably mounted on the armature shaft 10. Thepinion is adapted to be shifted into and out of mesh with the fly wheel gear teeth 5 by means of a shift rod 13 and ayoke'member 14 which engages the collar 12. g

The shift rod 13 extends through a suitable opening in the dashboard 6 and is. pro vided at its rear end with .an enlarged portion 15 which serves as the movable core member of an electromagnet 16. The core 'meming 17 which when energized, shifts the rod 13 forwardly'against the tension'of a spring 1&that is connected to the rod 13 and to the footboard7. A switch member 19 is carried ber 15 is surrounded by an actuating windby the rod 13 and is shifted into and out of engagement with two contact members 20 simultaneously with the shifting of the pinion 11 into and out of mesh with the fly wheel gear teeth 5. Y

A generator 21, the armature of which is indicated at 22, comprises a series field winding 23 and a shunt field winding 24.

A cut out switch 25 comprises a core mem- -ber. 26 and coils 27 and 28 which are nor- I a spring'31. A contact member 32, carried by the armature 29, .coacts'with a fixed conport at 30 and is normally held upward byj,

tact member 33 that is connected to a common point of the coils 27 and 28.

A switch 34, comprising a plug 35, and

which is the usual plug switch for control ling the ignition systems of automobiles, is mounted on the dashboard 6 and is connect ed in series with the coil 17. I

An ignition system which'is employed in connection with the starting system, comprises an induction coil 36, an interrupter 37, mounted on the generator shaft 38 and a distributer 39 that is operatively connected to the generator shaft. A battery 40 supplies current to the ignition system when the generator voltage is low. I do not wish to limit myself to the details of the ignition system as the same form no part of my present invention.

It may be assumed that the various parts are stationary and in their respective inoperative positions. lVhen it is desired -to start the engine, the plug switch is inserted and a.

circuit is completed from the ungrounded side of the battery through the generator armature 22,'series field winding 23, coil 17 and plug switch 34 to ground. The coil 17 is energized to elfect the meshing of the pinion 11 with the fly wheel gear teeth 5 and to close the switch .19. The motor circuit, which is thereby completed, extends. from the ungrounded side of the battery through the switch member 19, and-contact members 20 and the motor armature to ground. The motor then operates to start the engine.

As the engine speeds up, the generator is operated at an increasing speed, and its electromotive force increases and opposes the electromotive force of the battery. When a predetermined speed is reached, the coil 17 is sufficiently deenergized to permit the spring '18 to retract'the' shift rod 13 and thereby withdraw the pinion 11 from the fly wheel gear teeth 5 and, at the same time, to open the switch ,19.

lVhen the generator voltage has increased to a predetermined value, the coils'27 and 28. of the cut-out switch, which are wound to assist each other, are sufficiently energized to draw the armature 29 downwardly and thereby connect the negative terminal of the generator to ground. The connection ex-' tends through the series coil'27, contact members 32 and 33 and the armature 29. The coil 17 is short circuited whenthe armature 29 is in its lower position. The generator then charges the storage battery as long as the generator voltage exceeds that of the battery. Current is also supplied to the ignition system and .may be utilized for lighting purposes. if desired.

When the generator voltage falls below that of the battery, current tends to flow in the reverse direction through'the series coil 27 and causes a magnetizing force to oppose that of the coil 28. The armature 29 is then clutch, (not shown) be held in, the vehicle will be propelled by the motor 9 for a period limited only by the capacity of the storage battery or by the removal of the switch plug 35. The circuit comprising the coil 17 is broken by the removal of the switch plug 35, and the spring 18 retracts the rod 13 to disconnect the motor 9 from the engine shaft andto open the switch 19.-

The removal of the plug 35, when the vehicle is not in use, will efi'ectually prevent the use of the starting motor. In view of the fact that the starting motor operates substantially noiselessly, it is important that the unauthorized removal of the car by this means be prevented. I

A modification of my invention is diagrammatically shown in Fig. 2, in which like numeralsdesignate corresponding parts. The ignition system is omitted from this view as being unnecessary in view of itsillustration in Fig. 1. This system differs from that of Fig. 1 in the means by which the motor is connected to the engine shaft. The motor armature shaft 41 is provided with a pinion 42 which meshes with a gear wheel 43. A roller clutch 44 connects the gear wheel 43 to the engine shaft 3.

The operation of the electrical circuits of the modified form of my invention is identical with that of Fig. 1. The clutch 44 allows the engine shaft 3 to overrun the gear wheel 43 when the engine is running. When the motor is operated to start the engine or is operated automatically when the engine stops, the clutch connects the gear wheel 43 to the engine shaft and the motor operates as above described to start the engine or to propel the vehicle.

The advantages of this modified form of my invention are that no meshing of gear wheels is required before the motor is operatively connected to the engine shaft and that the motor is disconnected from the engine shaft whenever the speed of the latter exceeds that of the former.

A second modification of my invention is shown in Fig. 3, in which like numerals designate corresponding parts. A relay switch 46, which controls the circuit of the coil 17, comprises a core member 47 which is surrounded by a coil 48, and an armature 49. The coil 48 is in. series with the generator armature 22 and the battery 40. The armature 49 carries a grounded contact member 50 which -coacts with a stationary contact membr"'51 to open and close the circuit of the coil 17.

When the switch plug 35 is inserted, the coil 48 is energized to draw the armature49 downwardly to engage the contact members 50 and '51. The coil 17 is thereby energized to close the motorcircuit to start the engine in the manner above described in connection with Fig. 2. When the generator voltage reaches a predetermined value, the coil 48 is sufliciently deenergized to release the armature 49 which'breaks the circuit of the coil .17. The spring 18 then withdraws the switch member 19 tobreak the motor circuit.

4 I claim as my invention:'

1. The comblnation with an engine shaft,

a motor normally, disconnected therefrom, and means for operativel connecting said devlces, of means operab e at a predetermined speed of said shaft to efiect the actu ation ofsaid motor and the operative connection of-said motor to said shaft, and, at a second predetermined speed, to eifect the disconnection of said motor from said shaft and to render said motor inactive, said means comprising an electromagnetically operable switch for controlling the circuit of said motor;

,2. The combination with an engine shaft,

an electric motor, and means for operatively connecting said devices, of a' source of current at substantially constant voltage, and means for controlling the connection of said -motor to said source, said means comprising said source, a source of electromotive force, the value of which varies in accordance with the speed of said engine1 shaft, and an electromagnetically operable switch tha'tis controlled in accordance with the relative values of said electromotive forces. I i I 3; The combination with a source of current, and an electric motor in circuit therewith, of a switch for controlling the motor circuit and comprising a coil in circuit with,

said source, and a generator in circuit Wlth said coil and said source.

4. The combination with a source of current and an .electr1c motor in circuit therewith, of means for controlling the operat1on of said motor, said means comprising:

said source, and a generator so connectedthat its voltage opposes that of said source.

6. The combination wlth a source of current and an electric motor in circuit therewith, of a generator in circuit with said source, an electromagnetic switch for controlling the motor circuit and comprisingl a coil in circuit with generator.

7. The combination with an internal combustion engine and an ignition system com-- prising a plug switch, of an electric motor, an electromagnetically operable switch in circuit with said motor comprising a coil in'circuit with'said plug switch, and means for controlling the energizing of said coil in accordance with the speed of-said engine.

8. The combination with an engine shaft, an electric motor that is-disconnected from said engine shaft under normal operating said source and sai conditions, and means for operatively connecting the same, of means for automaticallywflecting the operative connection of the motor to said engine shaft and actuating said motor when the speed of the engine shaft reaches a predetermined minimum and for rendering said motor inactive 'and effecting the disconnection of the motor from the engine shaft when the engine speed reaches a predetermined maximum.

In testimony whereof, I have. hereunto iglligcribed my name this 2nd day of August,

WILLIAM M. Bmnsrmw, Y B. B. HINES. 

